The Get Wildly Creative About South Africa online ad contest is being run by the GeoBranding Center of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council and sponsored by the International Marketing Council of South Africa, custodian of Brand South Africa, in partnership with South African Airways, South African Tourism, and the global Zooppa.com community of more than 60,000 creative enthusiasts. The campaign aims to develop fresh ideas and promote viral expressions of how to present South Africa's brand face to the world following the global media spotlight and influx of visitors to the country during the FIFA World Cup later this year.

With just under a month remaining for advertising enthusiasts and students to dream up new ways to communicate Brand South Africa to tourists, investors and business audiences, more than 10,000 Internet users have viewed contest information and nearly 400 contestants have already submitted creative work. They're looking to gain global recognition, and win cash, computer gear and a memorable VIP trip to South Africa, courtesy of South African Airways and South Africa Tourism.

The entries will be judged by a panel of marketing experts, luminaries from South African travel and tourism and notable voices from South African media including Anitha Soni, Chair of the International Marketing Council Board of Trustees, Elaine Youngleson, Managing Director of Club Med, Gregg Truman, VP of Marketing for South African Airways, Andre Shearer, CEO of Cape Classics Wine, Noah Greenhill, Chief Marketing Officer of JSE Limited, Jade Maletsky, Group Marketing Head of Strategy for Liberty Group, Leanne Manas, Morning Live Anchor on SABC, Imann Rappetti, Anchor of ETV News and Current Affairs, Jacqualene Humphries, Chief Marketing Officer of Neotel, Heather Third, Director, Special Projects Africa, Microsoft, and CMO Council Africa Chairwoman, Connie DeLange, Group Executive, Marketing of Dimension Data.

SAA, SA Tourism and the IMC are promoting Get Wildly Creative About South Africa on their web sites and in their print and email communications. Winning entries will be showcased in office, web site, magazine, in-flight video and airport venues. They are among many other media channels, bloggers and online communities who are supporting the contest and galvanizing interest worldwide. These include:

SAGoodNews.co.za

AfricaGoodNews.com

BizCommunity.com

MarketingWeb.co.za

MarketingMix.co.za

ADvantage magazine

More information and a creative brief for contestants can be obtained from the links below:

"We are delighted to partner with the International Marketing Council of South Africa and South African Airways on this innovative competition," said Sthu Zungu, President, South African Tourism, North America. "We look forward to hosting the talented winners on a memorable journey of discovery to South Africa."

Cash and prizes will be awarded to the top submissions within each category including Best Print Campaign, Best Online Banner Campaign, and Best Video Segment or Commercial. Winning entrants will have their work showcased globally to the CMO Council's 5,000 members who control more than $150 billion in annual marketing spend and recognized at a special IMC-hosted reception in New York City, the world's media center and creative hub. Winning entries will be announced and showcased June 9 at a press and VIP reception in Manhattan, New York.

The contest is part of a major Nation Branding research project being undertaken by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council and the International Marketing Council of South Africa, which is responsible for defining and shaping Brand South Africa's image throughout the world. With social media networks hosting billions of monthly visitors, conversations and connections, the CMO Council's GeoBranding Center is looking to evaluate the level of voice, influence and creative pull in these interactive online communities, particularly as it relates to shaping perceptions of countries, destinations, locations and origin of products.

About South African TourismSouth African Tourism is the national tourism agency responsible for the marketing of South Africa as a preferred tourist destination. For more information on South Africa, a world-class destination, the ideal place for both business and leisure, contact South African Tourism at 500 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2040, New York, N.Y., 10110; Tel: (212) 730-2929; Fax: (212) 764-1980; Email: info@us.southafrica.net or visit www.southafrica.net. For everything you need to know about planning your trip to the 2010 FIFA World CupTM, visit www.southafrica.net/2010. For information and brochures call 800-593-1318.

About SA Airways South African Airways features daily nonstop service from the U.S. to South Africa with morning departures from New York JFK, and afternoon direct service from Washington Dulles (with a stop in Dakar, Senegal) that offers travel convenience and award-winning service with state-of-the-art Airbus A340 aircraft. Travelers in Premium Business Class enjoy 180 degree fully flat-bed seats, and in economy class enjoy the most legroom versus competitors. Every seat on board offers an individual on-demand entertainment system, plush pillow, warm blanket and amenity kit. SAA's unrivaled network, featuring seamless connections to nearly 20 destinations within South Africa, and more than 25 cities across the rest of the continent, makes the airline the savvy traveler's "gateway to Africa." To complement this network, a world of privileges awaits those who join Voyager, South African Airways' premier mileage program. To sign up, visit www.flysaa.com, and link to the Voyager icon. For more information on South African Airways, please call (800) 722-9675 or visit www.flysaa.com, where travelers can sign up to be notified of great travel deals and vacation packages.

About the International Marketing Council of South Africa: The IMC, which produced the creative brief for the Get Wildly Creative competition, is the official custodian of Brand South Africa. It was established by the South African presidency in 2002 to help align government, business and civil society around a shared value proposition, the more effectively to promote the country as a destination for investment and tourism and as a competitive source of products, innovation, partnerships and fresh approaches to the challenges facing the world at the opening of the 21st century. IMC's responsibilities the national web portal, www.southafrica.info, which is currently receiving nearly 400,000 unique visits a month, along with www.mediaclubsouthafrica.com, a source of high quality, original content about South Africa, including royalty-free images, and www.brandsouthafricablog.com, which tells South Africa's story through independent local and international voices. IMC is also driving the Global South Africans' initiative to tap into the knowledge and networks of South Africa's talented and accomplished diaspora. Recognizing the pivotal role the social media conversation has to play in shaping South Africa image and reputation, IMC leapt at the opportunity to get involved with the Get Wildly Creative contest when it was offered by the CMO Council's Donovan Neale-May, himself a Global South African. For more information about IMC and its work, please call its US County Manager, Simon Barber, on 202 642 4994.

About the CMO Council: The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council is dedicated to high-level knowledge exchange, thought leadership and personal relationship building among senior corporate marketing leaders and brand decision-makers across a wide range of global industries. The CMO Council's 5,000 members control more than $150 billion in aggregated annual marketing expenditures and run complex, distributed marketing and sales operations worldwide. In total, the CMO Council and its strategic interest communities include over 12,000 global executives across 100 countries in multiple industries, segments and markets. Regional chapters and advisory boards are active in the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa. The Council's strategic interest groups include the Coalition to Leverage and Optimize Sales Effectiveness (CLOSE), Marketing Supply Chain Institute, Customer Experience Board, LoyaltyLeaders.org, Online Marketing Performance Institute, and the Forum to Advance the Mobile Experience (FAME). www.cmocouncil.org